Process
AQA A-Level Computer Science 7517
Fundamentals of Programming
Topic overviewData typesProgramming concepts and program structureArithmetic operationsRelational Operations, Constants and VariablesBoolean operationsString-handling operationsRandom numbers and exception handlingSubroutines, parameters and return valuesVariable scope and stack framesRecursive techniquesProgramming paradigms and the procedural approachClasses, Objects, Inheritance and PolymorphismAggregation, Composition, Class Diagrams and Design Principles
Fundamentals of Data Structures
Fundamentals of Algorithms
Theory of Computation
Topic overviewLogic Problems and Algorithm ConstructsPseudo-Code, Hand-Tracing and Program CorrectnessRepresentational Abstraction, Generalisation and Information HidingProcedural and Functional AbstractionData Abstraction and Problem ReductionDecomposition and CompositionAutomation and Finite State MachinesSets and Set NotationSubsets and Set OperationsRegular expressions and regular languagesBackus-Naur Form and syntax diagramsComparing Algorithms and FunctionsOrder of complexity and Big-O notationLimits of computation, tractability and heuristicsComputable problems and the Halting problemTuring machines
Fundamentals of Data Representation
Topic overviewNumber systems and the sets of numbersNumber bases: decimal, binary and hexadecimalBits, bytes and units of informationUnsigned binary and binary arithmeticSigned binary using two's complementFixed point and floating point representationNormalisation of floating point numbersRounding errors, accuracy, range and precisionCharacter coding systemsError checking and correctionBit patterns, analogue and digitalBitmapped graphicsVector graphicsDigital representation of soundMIDI and Data CompressionEncryption
Fundamentals of Computer Systems
Topic overviewHardware, Software and Its ClassificationSystem Software and the Operating SystemTranslators and the Role of the Operating SystemClassification of programming languagesTypes of program translatorLogic Gates and Their Truth TablesLogic Circuits and D-Type Flip-FlopsHalf-Adders and Full AddersBoolean algebra
Fundamentals of Computer Organisation and Architecture
Topic overviewInternal components, buses and von Neumann and Harvard architecturesThe Stored Program Concept and the ProcessorThe Fetch-Execute cycleThe processor instruction setAddressing modesMachine-Code OperationsShifts, Halting and Assembly Language ProgramsInterruptsFactors affecting processor performanceInput and output devicesSecondary storage devices
Fundamentals of Communication and Networking
Topic overviewCommunication methodsCommunication basicsNetwork Topology and Types of NetworkingWireless networkingThe Internet and Packet SwitchingRouting, URLs and Domain NamesFirewalls, Worms, Trojans and VirusesEncryption, Digital Signatures and CertificatesTCP/IPStandard application layer protocolsIP Address Structure and Subnet MaskingIP Standards and Public and Private AddressesDHCP and Network Address TranslationClient server modelThin- versus thick-client computing
Consequences of Uses of Computing
Systematic Approach to Problem Solving
Fundamentals of Databases
Big Data
Fundamentals of Programming
Programming paradigms and the procedural approach
- 1 thing to know
- Paper 1
Overview
Recall questions on the procedural and object-oriented paradigms, stepwise refinement, single entry and exit points, and how a hierarchy chart is drawn.
What you need to know
Answer each one before you reveal it.
Your recallNot started
Questions from this subtopic
Each one with the model answer underneath.
- 1
What is a programming paradigm?
Model answer
A style or approach to organising a program, defining how a problem is broken down and how code and data are arranged. The same problem can be solved in different paradigms, and many languages support more than one.
- 2
Describe the characteristics of the procedural programming paradigm.
Model answer
The program is written as a sequence of instructions that tell the computer what to do step by step, using sequence, selection and iteration, and it is organised into procedures and functions that are called in a defined order. Data is held in variables and data structures that are separate from the subroutines that act on them, and it is passed to them as parameters or held globally. The program is designed top-down, by breaking the overall task into subtasks.
- 3
Describe the characteristics of the object-oriented programming paradigm.
Model answer
The program is organised as a collection of objects that interact by calling one another's methods. Each object bundles its own data with the operations that act on that data, and the data is normally kept private so it can only be reached through the object's methods. Objects are created from classes, which may be built from other classes by inheritance, and code is designed by identifying the things in the problem and their relationships rather than the steps to be carried out.
- 4
State the essential difference between how the procedural and object-oriented paradigms treat data and code.
Model answer
In the procedural paradigm data and the subroutines that process it are separate, and data is handed to subroutines that any part of the program may call. In the object-oriented paradigm they are bundled together in objects, so the data belongs to the object and is normally reachable only through that object's own methods.
- 5
What is the structured approach to program design and construction?
Model answer
A disciplined way of building programs in which the problem is broken down into a hierarchy of clearly defined modules or subroutines, each with a single well-defined task, one entry point and one exit point. Only sequence, selection and iteration are used to control the flow, with unconditional jumps such as GOTO avoided, and data is passed between modules through defined interfaces.
- 6
What is stepwise refinement?
Model answer
The top-down technique of starting with a statement of the whole problem and repeatedly breaking each part into smaller subtasks, until every subtask is simple enough to be written directly as a subroutine. It produces the structure of the program before any detailed code is written.
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